"The man entered the cafe briefly and was acting suspiciously, fleeing on foot following an incident with another patron, without his bag," the report said. "Given the circumstances of him leaving staff checked the bag, discovering the cash."

'Medical condition'
New South Wales police confirmed to msnbc.com that a man had been arrested but declined to comment on whether he was the suspect who had earlier been sought.

A spokesman said the arrested man had been taken to a local police station but had suffered "a medical condition" and was taken to hospital where was being kept under police guard.

Police would only describe the suitcase's contents as "a significant amount of cash."

A cafe staff member contacted by telephone told The Associated Press she was too busy with customers to comment.